Hosts UAE crashed to a crushing defeat to Pakistan in the 5th match of the Tri-Series 2025. While like previous matches, they had their moments but could not capitalize on those and let the game slip and drift totally. While Pakistan advanced to the finals, UAE bowed out fighting and will play the last match to gain some pride. There are many facets of the game that they missed out and we will try and list three reasons for UAE’s loss to Pakistan.
Dropped catches of Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Nawaz hurts UAE badly
UAE started well after losing the toss as they got wickets at regular intervals getting wickets in the powerplay and even in the middle overs. They chipped away and reduced the Men in Green to 80/5 at one stage. After 15 overs, UAE had Pakistan reeling at 97/5 when two significant moments of the game happened. On both occasions, Haider Ali was the unlucky bowler.
In the last two balls of the 16th over, first Mohammad Nawaz was dropped by Asif Khan at deep backward square leg while in the very next ball, Alishan Sarafu in the deep dropped Fakhar Zaman at long-on. The duo were settling in and trying to build a stand when they got reprieves and they did make UAE pay big time with a late flourish that took them to an above par score. Had those chances being taken, Pakistan would not have got the finishing kick and may have scored around 150. The fact that they got to 171 is due to set batters still at the crease.
They say catches win matches and UAE’s fielding was in general poor. They dropped two set batters and made them pay and from there UAE never really recovered. Going into their final league game against Afghanistan and to Asia Cup beyond, UAE must tighten up their fielding or else they will struggle to compete let alone win. They have lost all matches in this tournament and by good margins it has to be said.
Conceding 42 runs in the final 2 overs deflated UAE as a wholeÂ
Despite the dropped catches, UAEÂ tried to keep things under check as they kept Pakistan down to 129/5 in 18 overs. At this stage, the consensus was that Pakistan may end up with somewhere around 140-150 getting about 20 odd runs in the last 2 overs. But what followed was massacre and game-changing in more ways than one. It was deflating for UAE and match-defining for Pakistan.
First it was Mohammad Nawaz’s turn to make UAE pay for those dropped catches earlier as he smashed Junaid Siddique for a hat-trick of boundaries and also a maximum as 20 runs came off the 19th over. The carnage was not done yet as in the final over, Fakhar Zaman drove home the advantage by hitting Jawadullah for 5 consecutive boundaries to end the innings as 22 came off this over. Both these overs boosted Pakistan and their confidence as they got to 171 which was around 15-20 above par on that Sharjah surface.
UAE will learn the hard way that they cannot let the game slip away like this. They need to bowl the right lines and lengths and be consistent throughout. One felt they panicked under pressure. They have one more game before Asia Cup to address these issues but they gave their all but lacked in these key areas with the ball. T20 is cruel as one or in this case two overs can totally change the complexion of the game.
Lack of or no support to Alishan Sharafu hurts UAE
Just like the previous two games, only one player of UAE stood up while the rest around them capitulated. Alishan Sharafu showed his class and scored a brilliant 68 off 51 balls. But there was little or no support from the other end. Captain Muhammad Waseem got a start as they went through the powerplay wicketless. But once Waseem fell after powerplay, it was the same old story of losing wickets in clusters.
Sharafu did well at one end but the required rate climbed up and no one really stood up for UAE from the middle and lower middle order. They lost wickets after over number 10 and completely lost the momentum and plot. There was no urgency as such in the innings. Sharafu was battling a lonely battle after Waseem got out and eventually later on he too fell. The UAE batters failed to read Abrar Ahmed as he was the star for Pakistan with 4/9 in 4 overs.
Going forward, we would like to see more fight from UAE as this was an easy defeat. The team has to bat and perform as a unit in these chases of 170+. One man cannot get you to the target. For UAE, every innings one man is shining while the rest are falling. This will not help going forward in Asia Cup. In order to do well and maybe win their last league game, they need to perform well as a unit. Maybe hope to bat first if they win the toss.
What Lies Ahead
Before the summit clash on Sunday, we have another clash coming your way later tonight as Afghanistan takes on hosts UAE from Sharjah at 8:30 PM IST on September 5th 2025. UAE would like to end their campaign on a high while Afghanistan will look to carry winning momentum into the final against Pakistan on Sunday.
Which team will come out on top in this final league clash later tonight? Only time will tell as we cannot wait for the action to begin.
Also Read: UAE T20I Tri-Series 2025: 3 Reasons For Pakistan’s Shocking Loss to Afghanistan.